Uzbek Taxi Registration Angers Drivers

Tensions are running high among thousands of unofficial taxi drivers in Uzbekistan, as many fear a compulsory licensing scheme will force them out of business.

The Uzbek government issued a directive in January ordering all unregistered taxi drivers to apply for government licences and to buy first-aid kits and signs clearly identifying their vehicles.

A six-month taxi licence costs 500 US dollars, and drivers are expected to spend a similar amount on taxi signs, paint for their vehicles and inspections to check they are roadworthy.

Once licensed, the drivers will come under the authority of a central taxi fleet, to which they have to pay a proportion of their earnings.

The road transport agency argues that the law will regulate the taxi trade more civilised, but drivers say they only make 150 to 200 dollars a month and cannot afford the extra costs.

Anyone using a car as an unlicensed taxi can now face a fine ranging between 680 and 3,400 dollars, plus confiscation of the vehicle.

Many drivers have complained to the Initiative Group of Independent Human Rights Defenders, whose head Surat Ikramov warned that the new requirements could provoke social tensions.

“It could end badly if [drivers] are suddenly deprived of their earnings; it would be a shock,” he said.

Emotions ran high in mid-March when police mounted an operation against unlicensed taxis and confiscated a number of cars.

A taxi driver from the centrally-located Syrdarya region said a policeman tricked his way into his car by pretending to be a passenger, then called for backup.

“A young man got into my car and asked me to drive to the market, while speaking to someone on the phone. When we got there I was surrounded [by police] who told me I was breaking the law,” he said.

Akbar, a taxi driver with 15 years experience, said the ban on working without a licence had left him unable to provide for his family of five.

He said he did not feel he owed anyone a cut of his earnings. “All I earn is mine,” he said.

Officially-registered taxis generally cater to a different clientele than their private counterparts, charging much more and used mainly by people visiting Uzbekistan, government officials and internationals.

It would cost about 30 dollars to go from one end of the capital Tashkent to the other in an official cab, compared with ten dollars in an unregistered car.

This article was produced as part of News Briefing Central Asia output, funded by the National Endowment for Democracy.

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